Fragments
by Allemagne
Summary: Modern Republic City AU. Katara, young physician prodigy of the Southern Water Tribe, pours every ounce of her being into caring for her patients and has little time for anything else. A life-or-death situation thrusts her into proximity with Avatar Aang, beloved protector of all nations—who becomes determined to piece together the parts of she who fixes everyone else. Kataang.
1. you and I collide

A/N: This story is also on my tumblr if you prefer to follow there. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

Katara exhaled slowly after settling in the driver's seat of her car, letting out a long breath she didn't know she was holding. She let loose the bundle of hair that had been hastily twisted into a knot at the nape of her neck, and rested her head on the steering wheel.

Working as an emergency room physician at Republic City General Hospital was rewarding, but _exhausting_ work. She'd spent her entire afternoon shift trying to heal the teenaged son of a nearby shopkeeper, who'd got on the wrong side of certain members that were part of the new Triple Threat Triad revival. He'd joined in a misguided attempt to protect his mother from extortion, but when he couldn't deliver, well…a well-aimed earthbending shot to the head certainly got the message across. It had taken every ounce of strength she could muster to keep him alive and stable, but it looked like he was going to pull through.

And despite it being one of the most grueling days she'd had in a long time, Suki _still_ expected her to go on this blind date. Katara reached blindly for the cell phone that she'd thrust haphazardly into the passenger's seat and opened her most recent texts, in which she was on her last attempt to weasel her way out of the upcoming dinner:

 _But Suki! I can't even feel my arms. How am I supposed to eat dinner with dead arms?_

 _No buts, Katara! You already agreed to this last week, and he's so excited to meet you. It'll be a good way to wind down! Just get a glass of wine, start up some conversation…it'll be great. Warrior's honor._

Katara started the engine and let out another sigh. No point in prolonging the inevitable.

* * *

"Are you _sure_ this isn't too much?" Katara asked apprehensively, turning her face to and fro in the mirror. Katara was unaccustomed to wearing any makeup at all, and was unsure how she was going to make it the entire night without rubbing her eyes in exhaustion and end up looking like a pandelephant.

"Nonsense!" Suki insisted as she approached the mirror with a grin, and laid a hand on Katara's shoulder. "A little makeup never hurt anyone. Besides, you're already beautiful—it's really just icing on the cake."

At that, Katara offered a small smile to her future sister-in-law. She was one of the first people to embrace Katara when she'd moved with Sokka to Republic City three years ago. Sokka, who'd accepted a nomination to represent the Southern Water Tribe on the Republic City council, fell head-over-heels in love with the headstrong Earth Kingdom representative and Kyoshi warrior. She quickly became accepted as an adjunct member of their family, and Katara's close friend and confidante, for which she was eternally grateful—Katara had also moved to Republic City on an offer for a lucrative position at Republic City General, but long hours meant little time to relax, much less make friends.

Katara smoothed a wrinkle on her dress and turned to face Suki, who lifted another hand to Katara's other shoulder and bit her lip as if in deep thought.

"Katara, listen," Suki began, "I know this may be a little hard for you, especially since this is your first real date after…"

"Don't," Katara said sharply, and looked away. She knew Suki meant well, but she didn't want to have this conversation. Not now, maybe not ever.

Suki's eyes filled with sympathy, which she quickly replaced with an encouraging look. "Well, just give him a chance. He's an old friend I met in the Earth Kingdom, and a really sweet guy. And he's tall!"

Katara couldn't help but crack a smile at that. "Okay, Suki. But I'm only doing this for you," she reminded Suki with a huff.

"For you, for me, for whomever," the warrior said, with a wave of her hand. "Doesn't matter. All I want is for you to give yourself a chance to feel again."

Katara glanced at herself in the mirror again. She hardly recognized herself, donned in a slim, pale blue sheath dress with earrings that sparkled and elegantly curled hair that hung softly about her shoulders (with her traditional hair loopies, as she'd insisted)—certainly more effort than she would have put in if left to her own devices, and for what?

To feel again…was it worth it to even try?

* * *

Katara smiled at her dinner date over a sip of wine, actually having a nice time despite herself. She was nervous when the only identifiers of her blind date provided by Suki were "long brown hair, and he'll probably be wearing green," but in the end it hadn't been too hard to find him, standing in the waiting area and looking just as anxious as she felt.

Haru, mystery man in question, finished the story he'd been recounting about the time he'd accidentally destroyed the large boulder preventing a vicious cobra-scorpion from exiting its cave while earthbending with his father as a kid.

"It chased us for miles!" he said emphatically, "and, just when we almost got away, I tripped over a _rock_. A rock! My father never let me live it down." Haru cleared his throat and began speaking in a comically low voice: "Haru, how does an earthbender trip over a rock? 500 more boulder squats for you!"

Katara laughed as he continued, "and just to rub salt in the wound, the stupid thing caught up to us and stung me. I still have the scar." He pushed up a sleeve and displayed a raised, uneven scar that wrapped around his left bicep.

 _This really isn't so bad_ , Katara mused. She wasn't expecting fireworks—and he really wasn't even _that_ tall—but he was nice and wholesome. That was as good a place to start as any.

"You think that was bad," Katara began as she swirled the dark liquid in her glass idly, "you should hear about my first waterbending practice with—"

Suddenly, a deafening crack shot through the air, and an immediate thunderous rumble followed. Katara dropper her wine glass in shock, while Haru let out a small yelp and dropped his fork. The heads of all of the restaurant's guests whipped back and forth, mumbling and searching for the source of the noise. Katara watched as the restaurant's doorman cautiously opened the door and peered outside.

Finding no apparent cause, he allowed the door to fall closed—only to have it thrust back open into his face a minute later by a frantic, round-faced woman grasping the hand of a small, frightened-looking child.

"Are there any doctors or waterbenders in here?!" the woman cried out desperately. The customers all stared blankly at her, including Katara, who took a beat to realize what had just been said. She pulled her napkin off of her lap and stood with purse in hand, throwing an apologetic glance to Haru and hoping he'd understand. There was no possible way that she could ignore a cry for help; hopefully, the woman was just overreacting to some minor problem with her kid.

"I'm a doctor," she announced as she approached the woman, putting on an air of composure. "Is something wrong with your child?"

"No, thank the Spirits, no, not him—" the woman managed, and seemed unable to say any more. "Please," she suddenly grasped Katara's hand, "just come with me!" And the woman promptly dragged both Katara and her son out of the restaurant.

"Wait, ma'am—" Katara huffed as they ran out of the restaurant and down the dark street, "what's wrong? Is someone hurt?" Even through her concern, Katara found herself wishing she'd had time to take her shoes off—being forced to run in heels was _no_ easy feat.

"Yes! He was trying to protect my son from those awful, awful Triple Threat _whatever_ people—oh Spirits, please let him be okay…" The woman appeared to be consumed with anguish, even as she huffed and dashed across the pavement. "He was hit in the back—one of the firebenders—they shot him, they shot him with lightning!"

That explained the resounding crack she'd heard in the restaurant. She spared a worried glance toward the woman's aforementioned child, but despite residual terror in his eyes and his heavy panting in his attempts to keep up with his mother, he appeared to be unharmed.

"They said…they said he didn't have a pulse," the woman gasped between breaths. "There are some people there now, but none of them can help him—there's not even a waterbender in sight!" Her son tripped over his feet and nearly fell as they dashed around a corner. The trio stopped briefly to right him, and began running once again. "I ran…to the restaurant because it was the closest building still open, and—"

"Ma'am, who is 'he'?" Katara interrupted breathlessly. "Is he a police officer, or…?"

"No!" the woman cried, coming to an abrupt halt as the three of them approached a chaotic scene of people.

A nearby rooftop was aflame, and a streetlight had been severed at the base and lay in pieces on the pavement. A car lay on its side with its windows shattered, and about 15 people were standing and walking around in various states of panic. A petite woman partially obscured a crumpled body that lay in the center of the crowd. He appeared to be a young man, bald head, very pale—

—And he bore the unmistakable arrow tattoos of the airbenders of old.

"'He's' the Avatar," the woman whispered to Katara in awestruck horror.


	2. holding out for a hero

If there were one thing to be said about the citizens of Republic City, it would be that everyone _adored_ Avatar Aang.

Katara had always thought that he'd seemed nice enough; she'd never met him personally, but he was always present at town hall meetings, or throwing festivals, or making TV appearances. She'd been in his proximity a few times, but only just close enough to hear the clear sound of his laugh, or to feel a gust of wind as he crafted air scooters for eager children. Whenever out in public, he was almost never seen without a gaggle of people hovering about. It was as though he had his own gravitational pull—people just seemed to flock to him, like flowers that unconsciously turned to face the sun.

She'd wondered once if it ever bothered him, hardly being able to walk down the street without someone asking to take a picture with him, or to see an airbending trick, or to please whip some sense into a group of hoodlums. He never seemed to mind, though—easily pulling a silly face for someone's selfie, responding with an enthusiastic: "of course, check this out!" as he whipped up a mini tornado in the middle of the street, or nodding his head solemnly and ensuring that he'd take care of the young roughhousers.

Sokka and Suki had gotten to know the Avatar rather well over the course of their work on the council in Republic City, and often regaled Katara with stories of his antics. In fact, Sokka and Avatar Aang had become quite close, given their predilection for terrible jokes and mischievous scheming—he was to be best man at Sokka and Suki's wedding this year.

Katara had been invited to a number of council events by Sokka where she might have met Avatar Aang, but she'd turned nearly all of them down. How could she justify taking a day off when people were hurt and sick and dying every day? How could she enjoy fine dining and lively music while people lay alone in starched hospital beds drawing their last breaths?

And if she didn't act now, the Avatar may never draw another breath again.

Time both slowed and sped up as Katara felt her feet dashing forward of their own accord before her mind could catch up. Despite the panic around her, she was consumed by an eerie sense of calm. This was an emergency, just like any other that she handled on a daily basis. Someone was depending on her. She couldn't let them down.

 _First, handle any immediate threats._

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw groups of people dashing out of the nearby burning building clothed in robes and pajamas, faces stricken, many clutching screaming infants or hauling out unconscious bodies. The fire was spreading rapidly to the neighboring buildings and consuming everything in its path. It would rage out of control soon if something wasn't done, making the entire street an unsafe place to be.

She needed a large water source; the small water pouch she kept in her purse wasn't going to cut it. But where on earth would she find that in the middle of a downtown street?

Then she spotted it—at the curb of the sidewalk, partially hidden by the overturned car, a fire hydrant. It was painted a sunny yellow, the color a stark contrast to the surrounding chaos and destruction.

 _Perfect._

"Are there any metalbenders here?" she yelled as she ran, looking around at the anxious bystanders. After a beat, a slim teenaged boy with scruffy hair tentatively raised his hand.

"Bend the cap off of that fire hydrant!" she commanded. "Do it, now!" The boy jumped, startled at the insistence in her voice, but shifted his weight toward the ground and placed his hands in front of him as if gripping something, then curled them outwards. The cap began to bend with a loud, grating protest, and then clattered to the ground, unleashing a rushing torrent of water that scattered several people to either side.

Katara directed her gaze at the hydrant and swung her arms above her head in a graceful arc. The onslaught of water followed, snaking through the air until it came to rest on the roof of the building, dousing the raging fire that had been burning freely only moments ago with an angry hiss. A plume of pale smoke billowed into the night air, and the collective sigh of relief from the building's inhabitants was almost palpable. She thrust a hand out and froze the opening of the hydrant with a large sheet of ice—that would have to do for now.

She continued forward, weaving through people until she was at the side of the Avatar, and then skidded to a halt and dropped to her knees. The pavement was cold under her hands, but it was nothing in comparison to the chill that crept its way up her spine when she saw the state Avatar Aang was in. He lay at an awkward angle on his side, skintight red suit nearly completely torn off at the waist to reveal an enormous, angry, oozing open wound on the center of his back. A quick once over informed Katara that he was otherwise relatively unharmed, but definitely not breathing.

"Avatar Aang!" she cried out anyway, shaking his shoulder as roughly as she dared, pressing a finger deep into the space underneath his clavicle to see if the pain would arouse him. No response.

The tearful young woman that sat by his side cradled one of his hands gently in her own. She raised large eyes swimming in tears to Katara, and ran a hand roughly across one that had escaped down her chin, sniffling. "They were—I ran—the boy—in the way—the Avatar jumped in front—got hit—someone called an ambulance—all my fault—" the woman stuttered, voice struggling over her quiet, choking sobs.

"It's okay," Katara said, hoping her voice had the right mix of the calm and soothing, yet commandeering nature she'd worked long to perfect. "I'm a doctor. Help me turn him on his back, quickly."

The two maneuvered the Avatar onto his back, his head lolling lifelessly to the side facing Katara, bearded jaw resting on the hard pavement. He looked almost peaceful, pale blue arrow ending at an unfurrowed brow and mouth slightly slack. For a second she wondered, stupidly, what color his eyes were.

Shaking off the momentary distraction, she made quick work of checking his pulses. Nothing.

She hastily shrugged her purse off of her shoulder and popped the top of the water pouch she kept at the bottom, filled with clean water that she replaced every day for emergencies like this.

The water coiled into the air and encased her hands with all of the familiarity of an old friend, and she began compressing the Avatar's chest, mending his ribs even as she snapped them in two with her thrusts, willing his damaged heart muscle to heal even as she forced it to beat.

The injury was severe; it was almost as though she could feel the anguish of the dying cells beneath her fingertips. The world around Katara fell away as she called on the moon spirit Yue and directed every iota of chi within her towards the young man beneath her, praying to all the spirits that she hadn't been too late.

After what may have been a minute or an eternity, the ambulance _finally_ arrived, hurtling around the corner with sirens wailing. It eased its way along the road's shoulder next to the other cars that had backed up in the meantime, until it screeched to a halt some 20 feet away from the nearest bystander, prevented from advancing further by the fallen streetlight.

The EMTs thrust their doors open, one opening the rear of the ambulance to grab a stretcher and the other joining her on the other side of the Avatar, the sniffling woman standing up and stepping back to allow the EMT to reach him. Katara knew the EMT in front of her well—she saw them often in the emergency department as they brought in patient after patient—and exhaled shakily as she looked into her dark, freckled face.

"Nutha," Katara said urgently, never halting her compressions, "I don't know if he's going to make it, I don't know how long it's been since—"

 _Since his heart stopped_ , she couldn't say aloud. Nutha responded only with a knowing look as she quickly set up a defibrillator. Katara lifted her hands off of Avatar Aang's torso as Nutha slapped the leads on his chest, and the seconds felt like hours as she heard _analyzing heart rhythm_ and then _shock advised_ , Nutha following with a "clear the patient!" and then—

"He's got a pulse!"

Katara barely heard the scattered clapping and _whoops_ from the crowd as she sat back on her heels, breathing heavily and massaging her sore arms with water-encased hands. The woman who was at the Avatar's side when Katara came to the scene let out a shaky, relieved laugh while Nutha and the other EMT, an earthbender named Gaolin, transferred the Avatar to a stretcher he'd prepared and made to load him in the ambulance.

Nutha turned around and placed a comforting hand on the exhausted waterbender's shoulder, offering a small smile. "You did great, Dr. Kuruk. We'll take good care of him."

Nutha stood and began to walk away when Katara pushed herself up and said, "I'm going too. I want to heal him on the way—I don't think he's out of the woods yet." Nutha nodded, joining Gaolin to lift the stretcher bearing the Avatar into the ambulance.

As Katara prepared to hop into the bed of the ambulance, she took a glance at the growing crowd around her. Some of the restaurant guests had apparently made their way outside to determine the source of the commotion, and among the faces she saw Haru, face unreadable. His eyes made contact with hers, and she mouthed an "I'm sorry" before lifting herself into the vehicle. She'd hardly expected to end her date in an ambulance, but she'd felt some uncontrollable pull to travel to the hospital with the Avatar. Something told her she'd be needed there.

The ride passed in a blur, Nutha starting an IV and prodding Avatar Aang here and there. Katara, however, never broke her contact with his chest, putting all of her effort into healing his damaged heart as much as possible.

She continued to search his face desperately for any signs of life. He was quite handsome this close, eyes shut peacefully and chiseled face relatively unmarred, although there was little Katara wouldn't have given to see a grimace, a flutter of his eyelids, a twitch of his arm—anything.

"Come on," she said quietly, although whether it was intended for him or herself, she couldn't say.

"Stay with me."


	3. the minor fall and the major lift

**A/N: Thank you all for your kind words, it means so much! Sorry for the delay in uploading this chapter. Medical school means I'll never be able to commit to a regular updating schedule, so I hope y'all will be patient with me! Beware: medical nerdiness ahead.**

* * *

It had been a rather uneventful evening at the Republic City General Hospital emergency department. Weekends were typically slammed with patients, especially with the Triad on the rise. More and more people were coming in with any number of lacerations and broken bones, or after having become deathly ill from the tasteless, colorless poison that the Triple Threats were famous for using during their "dinner" meetings.

The quiet night would soon be coming to an end, however—nurses could be seen bustling to and fro across the floor, busily preparing a room in the trauma bay for the arrival of the Avatar.

Niyok, ED nurse and Southern Water Tribe descendant, was in said room changing bedding and refilling the two large tubs of water that were kept in all patient rooms for healing. The bed itself was suspended over another large, shallow, oblong tub of water and could easily be rolled aside so that patients may be lowered into the tub. It was used often by waterbending teams in cardiac patients—a nurse would bend the water around the patient, encouraging the blood to flow and lessening the workload of the injured heart while a physician healed the damage.

Niyok had just finished the final preparations in the room when the double doors that led to the ambulance bay burst open, and the ED erupted into life. She first saw her sister, Nutha, at the head of a stretcher, followed by a bare scalp tattooed with a pale blue tattoo. Gaolin, whom Niyok recognized as Nutha's close friend and fellow EMT, pushed from the foot of the stretcher while Dr. Kuruk followed close behind.

* * *

"Stretcher behind you, coming through!" Nutha barked as she and Gaolin wheeled Avatar Aang swiftly through the emergency department, Katara hot on their heels. Her shoes clicked on the vinyl floor as she walked briskly, her mind focused only on what needed to be done next. None of the staff seemed surprised to see her there outside of her shift; Gaolin must have called ahead during the ride and notified them that she'd be coming along. She hadn't even noticed—she'd been so focused on the Avatar's heartbeat, keeping it steady and even.

Dr. Karu, firebender and one of the current ED physicians on duty, jogged up to Katara's side. He was one of the most senior physicians in the ED, as evidenced by the graying sideburns that ascended into a sleekly coiffed head of black hair. When Katara initially began her residency at Republic City General, Dr. Karu had a lot of disdain for her due to her young age; she'd been somewhat of a medical prodigy in the Southern Water Tribe, and was propelled into residency at the age of 23. It had taken a lot of effort to prove herself to him, but he'd surprised her at her graduation when he laid a hand on her shoulder and told her, sincerely, that she was an outstanding physician and he was proud to call her an equal. Since then, over the past year, they'd developed what she considered to be one of her most valuable professional relationships, based on mutual respect and trust.

True to his taciturn form, Dr. Karu dived directly into business without greeting or preamble as they walked: "what's the Avatar's status?" he asked brusquely as he swiped through Avatar Aang's newly created and rather empty patient chart on his tablet.

Katara sighed, glancing at the still form of said Avatar as he was jostled around on the stretcher. "Stable, for now, but his heart's extremely weak. I need to get him into the tub right away so I can work on healing it before he develops an arrhythmia, but I'll need you nearby in the event that he does."

Dr. Karu nodded, and departed after assuring her that he'd be only a room away seeing to another patient if she needed him. Nutha and Gaolin slowed as they approached the Avatar's designated room, Nutha offering a brief nod in greeting at her sister Niyok, who stood in wait at the doorway.

"Niyok," Katara greeted as Nutha and Gaolin maneuvered the stretcher around in the hallway. "He needs to go in the tub right away; please call in one of the waterbending nurses to help me. His respiratory effort is okay for now, but his saturations are a little lower than I'd like, so go ahead and start two liters of oxygen on him. Then start him on some fluids, because he's more than likely lost a fair amount of blood."

Niyok gave a quick nod, and preparations were quickly underway. Within a minute or two, another nurse had arrived, Avatar Aang had been lowered into the tub, and—with a brief farewell to the EMTs—Katara began bending water from one of the two large tubs in the corner of the room and restarted her work.

For a moment, the world was still. The nurse's hands glided gracefully over the Avatar's body, gently coaxing both the water and his blood to flow. Niyok had just finished hooking up fluids to his IV and was standing quietly near the tub, looking pensively down at the body below her. All of Katara's senses were directed toward her hands, focusing her mind and energy on healing. With every minute that passed, she could feel his heart growing stronger, the gentle beating more and more confident beneath her fingertips.

However, the moment of tranquility ended abruptly when she felt a sudden turbulence in the Avatar's chi. Katara struggled against it in an attempt to guide his energy into a smooth rhythm, but the heart monitor suddenly began to emit loud, frantic beeps. Katara's head whipped around to find her worst fears confirmed by the appearance of his heart's rhythm strip.

At the edges of her consciousness, she felt a swirling trepidation threatening to close in. This was _the_ Avatar she was dealing with—the literal embodiment of hope, light, and balance in this world—and he lay at the mercy of her bending and best medical ability.

 _What if I fail…_ again _?_

"Niyok, get Dr. Karu in here!" she commanded, stifling her momentary panic. Failure was _not_ an option. He was depending on her—she _had_ to save him.

Avatar Aang needed to be defibrillated, immediately. The automatic machines developed for contemporary times were useful, but they came nowhere near the precision of the firebenders.

Niyok rushed out and returned in quick time with Dr. Karu. He wasted no time talking, yanking off and discarding the gloves he was wearing. A small flame flickered to life beneath his palm as he analyzed the heart's electrical activity, searching for its intended origin. Katara picked at her nails anxiously as Dr. Karu worked, and after what seemed like hours, he found the node he was looking for and laid two fingers on the Avatar's chest.

"Clear the patient!" he ordered, before Katara saw a brief spark of electricity passing into the Avatar's heart. She held her breath, hoping for the best, but the heart monitor continued to beep angrily at them in protest. Dr. Karu cursed under his breath, alighting a flame once again, orange tendrils curling around his fingertips.

He released one more spark—and the heart monitor finally quieted as Avatar Aang's heart resumed a normal rhythm, lifting the heavy weight that had settled in the room. Katara sat down heavily in a chair, shoulders sagging in relief. Niyok let out an excited whoop and clapped her hands, and the other nurse who was manning a bag-valve mask over the Avatar's nose and mouth grinned happily.

Dr. Karu responded only with a satisfied nod, placing a gentle hand on Avatar Aang's shoulder.

"You're going to pull through," he said quietly. "We all believe in you." And with that, he nodded to Katara and swept out of the room.

Katara rubbed her temples tiredly as she stood up. She bent water onto her hand once again and laid a hand over Avatar Aang's heart, watching his face quietly she felt his chest rise and fall.

"I think the worst is over, you guys," she announced, reassured by the heavy thuds underneath her fingertips, "but he's still going to need to go to the ICU. Let's get him out of the tub so I can take a look at his back wound."

 _This is bad_ , the thought to herself a few minutes later, after Avatar Aang was laid on the hospital bed and turned on his side. The water had helped to clean some of the exudate from the wound, but was still an angry red, oozing blood and a thin liquid that looked suspiciously like spinal fluid. He was going to need a _lot_ of healing and physical therapy to regain his mobility.

"Please keep working on this," she said quietly to the waterbending nurse who was clearing out the used tub water while Niyok was checking the Avatar's IV. "I'm going to call the ICU."

She walked outside to the nurse's station and sat down, picking up one of the available phones.

"Dr. Karu already called up," the ICU physician said preemptively when she began to tell the story. "We're getting a bed ready for him now. Any particular bending therapies that you recommend?" The ICU physicians tended to be nonbenders, as the patients who frequented intensive care typically had health problems that were beyond the ability of bending to fix, so they generally took recommendations from bending physicians if deemed necessary and designated those therapies to the bending therapists.

"His heart still isn't in great shape; he'll likely need healing sessions at least every six hours for the first two days, then you can decrease to every twelve hours. I'm also feeling a lot of spinal cord damage from the wound to his back, so he'll need both healing sessions to regenerate the neurons, and firebenders treating his back wound a couple of times to prevent infection—his spinal canal is essentially open to the air, and the last thing he needs is meningitis while he's recovering."

The ICU physician voiced their assent, and Katara hung up. She let out an exhausted groan and dropped her head onto the desk, wrapping her arms about herself to block out the light. Her head was pounding—she hadn't felt this worn out since residency. She stayed that way for several minutes, thinking of nothing at all, listening to the ambient sounds of the hospital around her.

"Dr. Kuruk?"

Niyok's familiar voice drifted by, and Katara almost didn't notice, as she was currently massaging a knot in the spot where her neck met her shoulder with a grimace.

"I noticed that you had your brother listed as your emergency contact in your employee file. I figured you didn't have a ride home since you rode in the ambulance, so I gave him a call to come pick you up—I hope you don't mind," Niyok added nervously, twisting the end of her braid.

Katara sat up and blinked in surprise, taking a second to respond. "Thank you, Niyok," Katara said with grateful astonishment, "that was so thoughtful of you. I really appreciate it."

"Of course," Niyok responded, a warm smile spreading across her dark skin.

Katara had always liked Niyok very much; she was a kind and gentle nurse and quite unlike her rather stoic sister, although she had always appreciated Nutha's confident efficiency. The shared heritage of the three provided them an unspoken bond, which Katara couldn't help but feel grateful for as a Southern Water Triber who often felt out of her element in the fast-paced city.

She returned Niyok's smile and stood, stretching her back. She had nothing better to do while she waited for Sokka to arrive and there wasn't a bed yet available in the ICU, so she figured she might as well continue healing the Avatar's back wound.

By the time she returned to his room, he had been stripped of his shredded wingsuit and placed in a hospital gown. He lay on his side facing the wall, breathing quietly but otherwise just as unresponsive as when she'd been brought to him. It was surreal, seeing someone who harbored unbelievable power in such a defenseless position. She'd never even interacted with him before, and now she had been privy to helping him at his most vulnerable moment.

The nurse she'd left in the room bent the water off of her hand and stood, and left the room after a short bow to Katara. Katara took her place on the stool, taking in his current state. With a hovering finger, she traced one of the Lichtenberg figures that radiated outward from his wound, branching across his back and shoulders and peeking out from under his gown. She hadn't noticed them before, being more concerned with the grisly lesion at the center. They were almost beautiful, in a way, despite the fact that they'd likely be a permanent reminder of the Avatar's near-death experience.

Katara had been healing for no more than five minutes when a distressed voice rang out through the emergency department: "Katara! Aang!"

She was not accustomed to hearing her first name used in the hospital, so it took a minute for her to register the familiar voice calling for her. She shook herself from her reverie and stood, pulling Avatar Aang's sheet up over his shoulders and, with a final glance at his still form, left the room in search of her brother.

Soon enough, Katara saw both Sokka and his fiancé dashing through the ED toward her, skidding to a stop as they approached.

"Katara," Sokka said urgently, his face a picture of anxiety as he attempted to peer over her shoulder into the room. "How is Aang? Is he okay? Is someone with him? Did—"

"He's okay, Sokka," she reassured in a low voice as she placed a hand on Sokka's shoulder to stop him from barreling past her into Avatar Aang's room. "He's stable. He needs to rest; he's been through a lot today."

"Oh, thank the spirits," Suki breathed, a trembling hand held over her heart.

"Can we see him?" Sokka asked, his voice tight.

"Of course," Katara said, stepping aside so that Sokka and Suki could enter the room.

She leaned on the doorway as the two approached Avatar Aang. They talked in low, unintelligible voices over him, their faces masked with worry. Suki laid a hand on the Avatar's shoulder, looking down at him sadly. After a few more minutes, they turned and joined Katara in the doorway.

"So, what happened?" Suki asked in a hushed voice. "We got called by a police officer regarding the commotion with Aang downtown, but they were going off of witness reports because Aang had already been taken on the ambulance by the time they got there."

"Then your nurse called me," Sokka added, "and said that you'd come here by ambulance to take care of a 'very important patient.' We knew it had to be Aang."

Katara glanced into the Avatar's room with a sigh. "The Triple Threats happened," she said grimly.

Sokka's hands clenched into fists as she continued: "I don't know much more than you two do, except that Avatar Aang was trying to protect a kid who ended up in the line of fire while the Triad was trying to take out a young woman. He was struck in the back by lightning from a firebender."

Katara finished her tale with a brief recall of how she was led to the Avatar, and her struggle to keep him alive while Sokka and Suki stood quietly, taking in the story.

"I'm gonna have to put out a gag order on the press for a while," Sokka finally said after several minutes, rubbing the side of his face tiredly. "I have a feeling Aang is going to be in here for a while, and the last thing he needs is a million people trying to visit him every day and cameras crowding the front doors. We'll limit visitors to close friends only."

Suki nodded in agreement, and the three stepped out of the doorway, Katara sliding the glass door shut behind them.

"Well, talk about something to add to the resume, huh?" Sokka said brightly, in a forced attempt to lighten the mood. "Dr. Katara Kuruk: the Avatar's hero. I'm proud of you, lil' sis."

"You're off tomorrow, right? Come on, you can stay at our place tonight," Suki offered with a smile. She slung an arm around Katara's shoulder and gave her a comforting squeeze as they walked toward the ED's exit. "I know you didn't get to finish your date with Haru," Suki whispered conspiratorially, so that Katara's over-protective brother wouldn't hear, "he texted me on our way here, so I gave him your number. I hope you don't mind."

Katara shrugged noncommittally. The only thing she cared about right now was finding somewhere to sleep.

* * *

"Just let us know if you need anything," Suki said kindly as she fluffed a pillow on their guest bed and turned down the covers. "You know where our room is."

Katara thanked Suki as she left, and then collapsed facedown onto the mattress in exhaustion, not even bothering to turn off the lamp or remove the sheath dress she'd been wearing all night. It seemed impossible that her date with Haru and pulling the Avatar from the brink of death had occurred all in the span of one evening—it felt like eons ago that she was sitting in that restaurant, drinking wine and smiling and laughing freely.

She kicked her heels off, letting out a relieved groan and wiggling her toes in their newfound freedom. She lay there with her face buried in the soft pillow, and had nearly fallen asleep when was jolted back to reality by a cheerful jingle coming from her phone. She snatched the phone off of the bedside table in annoyance, blearily opening one eye to look at the bright screen.

 _Hey, it's Haru, I got your number from Suki. Crazy date, huh? Just wanted to make sure you and the Avatar turned out okay._

Katara tapped out a short reply, and then tossed her phone to the other side of the bed.

 _The Avatar is okay; he's going to pull through. Sorry our date ended so abruptly, but thanks for the nice time._

A couple of moments later, her phone buzzed again and lit up with a message reading: _no worries! Can't say I wasn't disappointed, but what you did was completely admirable, honestly. I'm just hoping that you're up for a re-do?_

But Katara was already fast asleep.


	4. the color of your energy

**A/N: *** **rises from the dead** *** I live! Surgery rotation is finally over, so life should hopefully resume a relatively normal schedule. Thank you all for your patience.**

* * *

"Katara?"

The waterbender heard her name spoken as if in a dream—or _was_ she dreaming? The air felt hazy, and the world was so comfortable and warm…

"Katara?"

The once-distant voice was becoming louder and clearer, but the pull of sleep was much stronger. She was floating in Yue Bay, bending the water around her in lazy circles. She could feel the very depths of the ocean floor, the powerful fins of the octowhale as it swam beneath her, each ripple and wave as they crashed into the sandy shores and rocky cliffs of Air Temple Island…

"Katara."

Katara's eyes flew open. She pried her face off of a drool-stained pillow, pulling her hair out of her eyes and squinting up at the face of her future sister-in-law.

"Am I late for work?"

Suki sighed in exasperation. "No, Katara. You have today and tomorrow off, remember? You worked pretty much all day yesterday, and then went back in to save Aang's life."

The events of the previous night came flooding back to her in an instant as she sat upright, throwing off the blanket that Suki must have placed over her and scrubbing the sleep out of her eyes.

"What time is it?" she asked blearily, running a hand through her tangled tresses.

"Around four."

"In the morning?" Katara asked, confused, as she looked out of the window into the low-lying beams of sunlight that lit up the guest bedroom.

"No, in the afternoon. You were exhausted—you've slept all day," Suki responded. "Sokka and I have been meeting with the chief of police all morning trying to get to the bottom of what happened last night. Sokka's still there, but I came back to check on you. They're going to need a statement from you at some point, but I told them to let you rest for today."

Katara nodded, barely listening as she pulled at the scratchy dress she was wearing in annoyance.

"Come on—" Suki began as she took Katara's arm and easily hoisted her up. "I ran a bath for you, and I'm going to heat up some leftover food that you can eat. We even got some sea prunes from the market the other day!"

Katara wrapped a grateful arm around Suki as they walked together toward the bathroom. "Thanks, Suki. What would I do without you?"

"Be smelly and hungry," Suki joked, with a jab to Katara's side.

Suki left Katara to her bath, and she stripped quickly and sank down into the warm, fragrant water. After a few minutes she was drifting in Yue Bay again, bending herself out toward the open ocean.

* * *

The first thing he was aware of was pain.

It was raw, stabbing, and aching. It emanated from his back and sent searing tongues of fire down his limbs, making him want to crawl out of his skin.

Aang let out a low, strained groan, his voice uncharacteristically hoarse. His arms struggled to find purchase as he writhed, sliding across starched fabric. He attempted to open his eyes, blinking heavily and rapidly in the face of unforgiving fluorescent lights.

 _Where am I?_

All he could hear was blood roaring in his ears, his senses dulled by the drunken haze of pain. His fists gripped the sheets as he grimaced, stifling the urge to cry out. The air was cold on his face, but his body was warm—too warm, stifled under the weight of soft blankets.

 _What…happened?_

His breath came in pained huffs as he finally adjusted to the light, making out a TV on the far wall, a window, an empty armchair, and a large metal stand from which hung several bags that were dripping into—where? He lifted an arm, finding that several of the tubes converged into an IV on the inside of his elbow, and his hand tracked the last one up to his nose.

"Oh, Avatar Aang! Thank the spirits, you're awake!"

He turned toward the loud, unfamiliar voice, his vision blurring and stomach churning with the sudden movement. The foggy silhouette of an elderly woman approached him, dressed in dark blue scrubs. Her wrinkled, concerned face hovered over his, obscuring the harsh lights. She placed a cool hand on his forehead as she said kindly: "You're in the hospital, Avatar Aang; I'm your nurse, Yagoda. How are you feeling, dear?"

"It _hurts_ ," Aang rasped, mouth dry, his tongue feeling thick and foreign as he pried it from the roof of his mouth. His breath hissed through clenched teeth as another wave of pain washed over him—he was desperate for any modicum of relief, for just one moment's respite from the relentless attack on his body.

"Oh, of course it does, you poor thing. I'll get an order for some morphine right away!" the nurse announced as she bustled back out of the room.

Yagoda returned in short time, and after just a few minutes of setting up the infusion Aang felt the pain subside to a dull throb, his tense muscles becoming lax. He felt an overwhelming urge to sleep, but he struggled against it, forcing his eyes to stay open.

"Let's turn you on your side, dear. The therapist will be in soon for your healing session, but I'll go ahead and get it started for you."

Yagoda placed gentle hands on Aang's shoulder and hip, and Aang attempted to help as she struggled with his weight—but he discovered, quite suddenly, that he couldn't move his legs at all.

He pushed himself up on his forearms in sudden alarm. "I—I can't move my legs!" he cried, his eyes wide and panicked. "Why can't I move my legs?!" He could feel the _pain_ —it spared no inch of his body—but he couldn't feel the sheets against them, and try as he might, he couldn't budge them a single inch.

 _No._

He felt a rising lump of fear in his throat as he froze, his breathing becoming rapid and erratic. He was the _Avatar_. He couldn't _not_ be able to _walk_. Enough people he loved had already died for him to be able to serve the world—how could he carry out his duties if he needed help just to get around? Just to get out of _bed_?

As his mind raced to a thousand dark places, Yagoda remained calm, sitting on the edge of the bed and placing a placating hand on his arm. He could feel the weight of her azure eyes boring into his face, but he couldn't bring himself to look at her.

"You were hurt very, very badly, Avatar Aang—it's a miracle that you're _alive_ ," she added quietly. "Our waterbending therapists have been by to work on your wounds every day, and they are very confident that you'll be able to walk again. However, it's going to take some time and effort to heal, and you'll have to be patient."

Aang considered this, his panicked breaths slowing and his death grip on the sheets loosening.

"Unfortunately, that means you're going to be here for a while," Yagoda said sympathetically, "but we're going to take good care of you. You're in good hands here, I promise."

He sat in silence, letting this news wash over him as he finally met her eyes. She radiated confidence and assurance that was difficult to ignore, as if she believed every word she'd spoken—and despite the ominous thoughts that continued to linger in his subconscious, he felt a strange sense of comfort and safety under her gaze.

After a minute or two, Aang nodded, mostly to himself. "Okay," he said, and offered her a weak smile. "I trust you."

They worked together to get him shifted onto his side, and for a while the only sound in the room was the soft sloshing of water on his back, coaxing the wound-up muscles and tendons to relax, bathing his aching wounds in her healing power.

"What happened to me?" he asked quietly after a few minutes, hoping she didn't hear him and almost afraid to know the answer.

There was silence for several moments. "Well," Yagoda began, her skillful hands dancing across his backside, "I don't really know all of the details. I heard that you were struck in the back with lightning by a member of the Triple Threat Triad, and that the force of the blow stopped your heart. Luckily, one of our very own physicians, Dr. Kuruk, happened to be in a restaurant nearby. She saved your life out there, and then she rode in the ambulance here with you to make sure that you'd be okay. Apparently, you gave everyone another scare in the emergency department, but Dr. Kuruk wouldn't leave your side until you were stable."

Yagoda's voice took on a note of warmth as she continued: "she's one of the best doctors around. She makes us Water Tribers proud."

"Kuruk?" Aang said with mild surprise as he turned slightly to face Yagoda. "She wouldn't happen to be Councilman Sokka Kuruk's sister, would she?"

"Oh, yes," Yagoda replied, a smile evident in her tone as she readjusted her hands. "One and the same."

Aang had always thought it strange that despite being so close to Sokka, he'd never gotten the chance to meet the sister Sokka bragged about so often. "She's _always_ working," he would gripe, throwing his hands in the air. "I mean, even I—master strategist and hardworking councilman—know when it's time to take a load off and relax. But Katara—I don't even know when she _sleeps_! It's been that way ever since…" and then Sokka would trail off, his expression momentarily consumed by some measure of grief, and would rapidly change the subject. Aang, naturally, was curious about whatever it was that Sokka wasn't telling him, but had never felt it was his place to ask.

Whatever the ambiguity was that surrounded Sokka's sister, she was the reason he was alive today. _I'll have to thank her somehow_ , he resolved, before finally succumbing to a deep, dreamless sleep.

* * *

Two relaxing days off and a relatively uneventful day of work found Katara seated at a computer in the nurse's bay of Republic City General's ED. Her phone lay on the table next to her, an open text message on its screen:

 _Hey, Katara? It's Haru again. I just wanted to make sure that my last text got through a couple of days ago. I never got a response from you, so…just checking._

Katara bit the inside of her cheek as she pointedly ignored her phone, fingers tapping away rapidly on the computer keyboard.

She should have just replied. He seemed kind, and he didn't deserve her silence. But every time she reached for her phone over the past couple of days, intending to text a response to Haru, she made an excuse to do something else.

Katara sighed and furrowed her brow in annoyance at herself. _This is silly. It's been nearly a year and a half now. Get over yourself, Katara._

"Dr. Kuruk?"

She'd deal with it after work, she promised herself. Right now, she needed to focus on her patients.

Katara cast her thoughts aside for the time being, and typed a few additional words into the patient note she was working on before looking up into Niyok's friendly face.

"Yes, Niyok?"

"Yagoda, one of the ICU nurses, just called. She said that the Avatar has finally woken up."

"Oh!" Katara placed a hand over her heart and sighed in relief. "That's such great news."

Since Avatar Aang had first rolled through the doors of Republic City General, Sokka and Suki had dropped in to see him at least once a day, as well as several other council members. Even the infamous Toph Beifong, a Republic City police officer who'd been in the news as of late on account of her recent promotion to sergeant, had paid a visit. Katara hadn't been working last night when she came, but had to navigate through the wreckage on her way in and been regaled with the story in great detail.

* * *

A sudden rumble cut through the air around Republic City General, and the ground around the hospital began to tremble. A small figure could be seen stomping angrily through the streets, leaving deep footprints in the pavement and clouds of dust in her wake.

Toph Beifong's face was twisted with rage as she stormed through the glass doors of the hospital and up to the guest services desk, ignoring the startled hospital employees who scrambled out of her path.

"Officer Beifong! It's a pleasure to see you—is there something I can help you with?" the desk's receptionist asked warily, his polite voice barely masking his uneasiness at Toph's fearsome expression.

Toph paused for a moment, and then inhaled deeply through her nose.

"Aang's been in the hospital for _two whole days_ , and no one had the decency to tell me until _today_?!" she yelled, slamming a fist on the top of the marble reception desk. It bisected down the middle and crashed to the ground, crumbling into pieces. "He could have been _dead_ and I wouldn't have even known!"

"We're so sorry!" the receptionist cried as he cowered low behind the remaining rubble of the desk. "Councilman Sokka notified everyone he could think of that was close to Avatar Aang, perhaps he just forgot? Or, maybe he wasn't aware that the two of you knew each other?"

"I AM HIS EARTHBENDING MASTER!" Toph bellowed, slamming a foot into the hospital lobby floor, the tile groaning in protest as a large crack split its surface. "Of course I _know_ him!" She barely registered the alarmed yelps around her, focusing instead on the trembling man she felt before her. "And there's an investigation taking place that I know _nothing_ about?!"

"We've been trying to keep the incident out of the news, so only the necessary people have been notified—but I know nothing about what happened or any investigation!" The receptionist recoiled as Toph's face twisted in fury once again at his statement. "P-please calm down, Officer Beifong!" he pleaded. "We have very sick patients here!"

Toph breathed heavily for several moments, fists clenched at her sides.

"Where is he?" she finally bit out. "Or will I have to find his room myself too?"

The receptionist stuttered out Aang's room number, and Toph immediately turned on her heel toward the stairs.

"My officers will come by to fix the damage," she said over her shoulder into the stunned silence as she ascended to the next floor.

 _Lily livers._

* * *

Katara hadn't yet had the chance to visit Avatar Aang, and frankly, it hadn't been any of her business to do so. He was no longer her patient, and she had no right to pry in his affairs. That hadn't kept her from peeking in his chart from time to time, however—it was just to ensure that he was receiving the bending sessions she recommended, Katara reasoned.

Dr. Karu had performed a more thorough assessment after she'd left that night, and his recorded injuries were as bad as she imagined—third degree burns, fractured spine, severe spinal cord injury…she'd stopped reading after a while, feeling sick to her stomach.

"She also said that he would like to meet the doctor who saved his life."

Katara's eyes refocused on Niyok in surprise. The nurse stared back at her pointedly, as if expecting Katara to catch on to a point that she had clearly missed.

"Do you—I mean, does he mean _me_?" Katara asked after a beat, bewildered. "I was hardly the only person involved in his care."

"Well, he asked for you specifically. By name."

Well, she couldn't very well say no to the Avatar. However, that didn't stop her from wondering why he hadn't also asked for Dr. Karu, or the EMTs. Perhaps he knew that she was the first one on the scene and hoped she'd have some information for him? She hoped that wasn't the case—she'd never even seen his attackers, and Sokka and Suki had been so busy with the investigation that they hadn't had the time to provide her with any intel.

Either way, it was certainly the least she could do to stop by. "Tell Yagoda I would be happy to meet with him after my shift is over," Katara answered.

Niyok nodded and before she left to attend to patients, she slid Katara a small piece of paper that read:

 _Avatar Aang_

 _Room 5E 112_

* * *

 _He's just a patient, like any other_ Katara reminded herself as she stood outside Avatar Aang's hospital room, wiping suddenly sweaty palms on the side of her navy skirt. _Why on earth am I nervous right now?_ _Well, he_ is _the Avatar._

She cleared her throat and knocked twice on the door before sliding the glass open a fraction, calling out a quiet "Avatar Aang?"

Katara was greeted only by the soft beeping of the heart monitor. She tossed her long braid over her shoulder and slid the glass open farther, taking a step inside the room. In the dim light from the window, she could see that the Avatar appeared to be fast asleep, his head turned away from her.

He looked just as he did that night, with a peaceful expression and mouth slightly slack—except a little scruffier for lack of shaving. Katara almost didn't want to disturb him, but she wasn't sure when she'd have another chance to stop by. She laid a hand on his shoulder, jostling it gently as she tried again to awaken him.

"Avatar Aang?"

He let out a soft groan in protest, turning his head toward her and shifting beneath the blankets. He squeezed his eyes tightly shut and rubbed at them roughly with his hand, before cracking them open just a fraction to peer up at her.

"I'm very sorry to wake you, Avatar Aang," Katara said quietly. "My name is Dr. Kuruk. Your nurse, Yagoda, said that you wanted to meet me?"

He blinked several times in an obvious attempt to wake up and struggled to sit up, but Katara reflexively placed her hands on his shoulders, pushing down gently but firmly. "Please, you need your rest." He acquiesced, settling back against the pillows to look up at her.

 _Gray,_ she thought absentmindedly. _His eyes are gray._

"I'm sorry—" he rasped, his voice thick with sleep. He cleared his throat and began again.

"I've been trying to stay awake, but this pain medication keeps knocking me right out," Aang said sheepishly. The clear tenor of his voice filled the room, and across his face spread a tired but genuine smile. "It's an honor to meet finally meet you, Dr. Kuruk. I'm sorry that it's under these circumstances," he said, tugging at the tube that ran into his nose. "I'm Aang."

"I know who you are, Avatar Aang," Katara replied, bemused. "But it's nice to finally meet you too—and to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

"I've definitely felt better. I can't even move my legs," he said forlornly.

"I was afraid of that," Katara sighed. "But with the right therapy, I'm sure it'll get better with time."

"That's what my nurse said—but it's good to hear it from someone else too. How long have I been out for?" he asked thoughtfully, scratching at his beard.

"About three days," Katara replied as she sat in the soft armchair placed near his bed, tucking her hands neatly over her knees in an attempt to hide the slight nervous tremble that they were developing under the Avatar's steady gaze.

"Oh man, three already? I've missed _so_ many meetings," he sighed, closing his eyes in dismay. After a moment, he looked at her once more, the corner of his mouth quirking upwards. "Well, from what I hear, it's you I have to thank that I have meetings to miss at all."

His voice took on a serious note as he continued, "you saved my life—that's a debt that I could never begin to repay. Thank you."

The absolute sincerity with which he spoke nearly caused Katara's breath to catch in her throat. She felt the urge to default to one of her standard responses: "please don't mention it," or "it was a team effort," but neither seemed like an adequate acknowledgement of his gratitude.

"You're welcome," she replied simply. "I'm just glad that I was there—I…don't know how much longer you would have made it."

"Yeah," the Avatar said somberly, turning his eyes toward the ceiling. "Do you know what happened that night?"

"Probably not anything more than you've already been told," she replied apologetically. He hummed in response, and the room fell silent.

"Sokka and Suki will be happy to know you're awake," Katara said brightly after a minute or so, in an attempt to cut through the melancholic mood that had settled over the room. "They've been here to see you every day."

"Oh, yeah?" he said with a grin. "They're some of the best friends I've ever had. Sokka talks a lot about you, you know."

Katara rolled her eyes in feigned annoyance. "I can only imagine the awful stories he's forced you to listen to about Katara the Nag."

Avatar Aang chuckled. "You'd be surprised—he actually admires you a lot. He hardly ever stops talking about all of your achievements. Don't expect him to admit it, though."

Katara smiled. "I guess he's all right too, as far as irritating older brothers go. I'll have to be honest, though—most of his stories about you revolve around the trouble you two get into together."

"Do I even want to know?" he asked apprehensively.

"Does streaking through Yue Bay ring a bell?"

Avatar Aang's face flushed and his mouth gaped open slightly, then quickly snapped shut. "I know nothing about such an incident," he replied indifferently, but the mirth in his eyes gave him away.

Katara stood, suppressing a giggle. "I have to go—but it was very nice to meet you, Avatar Aang."

"You too, Dr. Kuruk," he replied with a brilliant smile as he shook her proffered hand. "And thanks again. For everything."

Katara smiled in return, and then left, sliding the glass door shut behind her. She stood unmoving outside of Avatar Aang's room for a couple of minutes, staring straight ahead into nothing at all. Suddenly, she rifled through her white coat and pulled out her cell phone, typing out a quick message:

 _Hey, Haru. Sorry it took me a while to respond—it's been a long couple of days. I'm still up for a re-do if you are. How does this Thursday night around 7 sound?_

There.

She dropped her phone back into her coat and stuffed her hands into her pockets as she walked briskly down the hallway of the ICU, trying to push the image of twinkling gray eyes out of her head.


End file.
